Automatic safety gate-closing device for freight-elevators.



M. F. BIERSDORF.

AUTOMATIC SAFETY GATE CLOSING DEVICE FOR FREIGHT ELEVATORS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 11. 1917.

1,229,019.. A PatentedJune 5,1917.

mmllllmnnp-an Inventor 1 MathewEBiersdorf ilNTTE El dTATEg AT FFTQ MATHEW F. BIERSDORF, 015 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

Application filed January 11, 1917.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, MATHEW F. Brnns- DORF, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Automatic Safety Gate-Closing Devices for Freight- Elevators, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to elevator gates and particularly pertains to locking means therefor.

It is common practice to supply freight elevators and some other classes of elevators with vertically sliding gates which are counter-balanced and require manual operation to raise them in order to open the elevator shaft. It sometimes happens that these gates are inadvertently closed while the car is at a given floor and this causes considerable inconvenience. It is the principal object of this invention to provide locking means which will automaticallyact to maintain the gate in an opened position at such a time and to further insure that the gate will automatically gravitate to its closed position when the elevator car leaves the floor.

Another object of this invention is to provide a simple locking device which may be directly actuated by the elevator car to engage or disengage the gravity weight provided the elevator shaft gate.

Another object is to provide a gate weight of special construction so that it may be encountered by the locking mechanism and be held againstupward movement.

Another object is to provide a locking mechanism which may be embedded within the wall of the elevator shaft and is thus not liable to become inoperative.

Another object is to provide simple means for oiling the various movable parts of the gate and locking 'mechanism.

It is a further object to provide an elevator gate lock which is constructed of few parts and which may bereadily adjusted to adapt itself to variation in the alinement of the looks at the different floors of the build-} m ldther objects will appear hereinafter.

The invention is illustrated, by way of example, in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a view in vertical elevation Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 5, 1917.

Serial No. 141,792.

and section as seen through the elevator shaft wall and as illustrating the manner in Which the lock is actuated to secure the gate against downward movement.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in vertical section and elevation illustrating the elevator gate and further disclosing the man ner in which it is counterweighted.

Fig. 3 is a view in end elevation illustrating the elevator look as disassociated from its mounting.

' Fig. 4 is a view in side elevation illustrating the lock with one of its side plates removed to more clearly disclose its operating mechanism.

Fig. 5 is a view in end elevation illustrating the face plate of the lock and the lock bolt projecting therethrough.

Fig. 6 is a view in side elevation drawn on an enlarged scale and illustrating a means by which the lock may be adjusted to be alinecl with the actuating cam. v

Fig. 7 is a view in section illustrating the manner in which access is obtained to the weight well.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 10 indicates an elevator car adapted to be vertically moved by a suitable hoisting mechanism. This car travels along a vertical elevator shaft 11 which is provided with a series of shaft openings or doorways 12, one of which is at each of the floors and adapted to be communicated with by the elevator. The shaft openings are closed by a vertically moving gravity operated safety gate 13 which is suspended from a hanger rope 14 which is fastened to the center of the gate and leads over a centrally disposed pulley-wheel 15 fixed at the top of the doorway. The rope is led from the pulley 15 to one side of the doorway and downwardly over a second pulley 16. into a weight well 17 where it is secured at the upper end of a counterweightlS. This weight may be formed either with circular or rectangular cross section and is secured to the rope 14 by a metallic fitting 19. This fitting is formed with rolled side flanges which extend horizontally and are adapted to be engaged by the locking device 20. In order to permit access into the well 17 a removable door or side l'll is provided as shown in Fig. 7

The locking device is composed of an outer housing or case 21 which is rectangular in shape and is formed with outwardly extending ears 22 and 23 which permit it to be securely fastened within a pocket in the elevator shaft wall and to communicate with the weight well as well as the elevator shaft. A front plate 24 is formed on the casing and has an opening 25 through it adapted to permit horizontal reciprocation of a locking dog 26 which is actuated by a mechanism within the housing. This dog is mounted upon a pivot pin 27extending through the substantially vertical leg of a bell crank 28, the other leg of said crank extending substantially horizontal and actuated by a roller plate 29. The bell crank is mounted upon a pivot pin 30 and is secured to the roller plate by means of a sliding pin 31. The roller plate is substantially triangular in shape and has its pivot pin'32 disposed at the apex of the triangle. A portion of the plate extends outwardly from the housing through a slotted opening 33 and is formed with a' horizontally extending slot I 4, and in the path of travel; of'the flange 34 adapted to receive an adjustable shaft 35 upon which the roller 36 is mounted. This roller extends outwardly into the elevatorshaft andis adapted to be encountered by a face cam 37 formed upon the elevator carand extending outwardly in a manner to move the roller inwardly toward the housing.

As a means for insuring thatthe pulleys 15 and 16 are suitably lubricated, a pair of superimposed oil reservoirs 38 are provided and fitted with communicating passages which lead tothe shafts upon which the pulleys rotate and thus constantly supply them with lubrication.

When the locking device. is to be used, it is mounted within the wall pocket and adjusted so that the roller at each floor will encounter the face cam 37 upon the car. This is done by moving the roller shaft horizontally along the slot 3 1; in the roller plate and thereafter looking it with a looknut 39. In case other adjustment is necessary, the shaft 35 may be extended, asrillustrated in Fig. 6, so that the roller 36 will be positioned at any desired lateral point plate 29 inwardly upon the pivot pin 32. r This in turn will cause the pin 31 to be.

moved along-a slot 31 in the roller plate. Movement of the pin 31- will act to swing the lever 28 in the direction of the arrow -aand upon its pivot pin- 30. This will cause the locking dog 26 to swing outwardly, as indicated in dotted lines of; Fig.

upon the weight fixture 19. When the elevator is brought to a stop, the dog will thus be extending outwardly into the weight well, The elevator gate is then manually lifted and this will cause its counterweight 18 to move downwardly in the weight well.

when the weight is engaged by the dog, as

illustrated in Fig. 1' of the drawings, it will be impossible for the gate to be drawn down and this can only be effected when the elevator has moved away from the floor. This will cause the face cam 37 v to relieve the roller 36 and permit a spring 41 to restore the various parts of the mechanism to their normal position of disengagement. When this has been accomplished the gate will move downwardly to its closed position, due to gravity, as, its weight is slightly greater than that of the counterweight.

It will thus be seen that the locking mechanism here disclosed is decidedly simple in its operation and is so constructed as to be positively actuated by movement of theelevator car only, and in a manner to eflectively lock the elevator gate in its opened position and to automatically permit the gate to close when the car has left the floor.

While Ihave shown the preferred construction of my elevator gate look as now 1 known to me, it will be understood that various changes in the combination, construction and arrangement of parts may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. The combination with an elevator gate having a counterbalancing weight, of a lock adapted to be operated by the elevator for locking the weight down and holding the gate up, said lock comprising a housing adapted to be mounted in a pocket in the elevator shaft wall adjacent the weight well, a bell crank pivotally mounted in the housing, a locking dog pivotally mounted to one leg of the bell crank and adapted to swing through the wall of the housing into the weight well andhold the weight from going up, a roller plate pivotally mounted in the housing and carrying a pin for slidingly engaging the other leg of the bell crank and extending through the opposite side of the housing from the locking dog, a roller carried by the outer end of the roller plate, and a cam upon the elevator for engaging the roller; so that when the elevator is in position with the cam in engagement with the roller, with the gate elevated and the Weight down, the locking dog Will hold the Weight down and hold the gate elevated.

2. In a lock for elevator gates, a housing, a bell crank pivotally mounted in the housing, a locking dog pivotally mounted to one leg of the bell crank and adapted to extend tl'irough the Wall of the housing, a spring connected to the bell crank and the housing for Withdrawing the locking dog, a roller Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the crank, and a roller adjustably connected to the roller plate and projecting outwardly from the housing.

In testimony whereof I have name to this specification.

MATHEW F. BIERSDORF.

signed my Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. C. 

